Westminster has signed off a significant set of planning and compulsory purchase changes that now have firm start dates. The Statutory Instrument signed at 2.20 p.m. on 18 December 2025 brings parts of the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 and the Levelling‑up and Regeneration Act 2023 into force, with the main tranche commencing on 18 February 2026. For developers, sponsors and lenders, the headline is shorter CPO and vesting timelines in England, clearer policy cycles for nationally significant infrastructure, and early groundwork for Natural England’s environmental planning regime.

Two CPO shifts stand out. First, confirming authorities will be able to authorise compulsory purchase subject to conditions, rather than waiting for every prerequisite to be satisfied. According to the legislation published on legislation.gov.uk, the conditional confirmation power applies to orders confirmed by authorities other than the Welsh Ministers, or prepared in draft by non‑Welsh authorities, and it activates on 18 February 2026. That gives acquiring bodies a path to lock in compulsory powers earlier while sequencing delivery requirements.

Second, vesting can happen sooner. Amendments to the Compulsory Purchase (Vesting Declarations) Act 1981 introduce two routes to earlier transfer of title under the general vesting declaration procedure: an expedited track for unoccupied land or where no person with an interest can be identified, and an advancement of vesting by agreement. The regulation confirms these mechanisms take effect for England on 18 February 2026, with regulation‑making powers available from 19 December 2025. Compulsory acquisitions authorised before commencement are carved out by the transitional provisions.

The notice stage is also streamlined. Section 106 reduces the detail required in newspaper notices describing land for CPO purposes, a small but welcome change for local authorities and promoters who have been absorbing rising advertising costs. In practice this is administrative rather than transformative, but it removes one friction point that routinely delayed publication and tender timetables.

Compensation rules see a targeted tweak. Where a local authority uses section 125 of the Local Government Act 1972 to acquire land on behalf of a parish or community council, it can now direct that compensation is assessed under section 14A of the Land Compensation Act 1961. That section requires the prospect of planning permission to be ignored in specified cases, narrowing scope for claims based on hope value. Valuers should audit assumptions on any such schemes moving through 2026.

National Policy Statements move to a statutory five‑year review rhythm from 18 February 2026, with an additional parliamentary test for material policy amendments. The Act also adjusts how legal challenges to NPSs and development consent decisions are handled. For energy, transport and water sponsors using the Planning Act 2008 route, this should reduce policy drift across multi‑year procurement and financing cycles, with clearer expectations about when the goalposts can shift.

Development corporations get a tidier rulebook on the same February date. The legislation clarifies overlaps between corporation types, standardises objectives around sustainable development, climate change and design, and equalises the list of infrastructure they may deliver. For regeneration projects where mixed governance has been a source of delay, this is intended to shorten the setup phase and firm up statutory powers.

Environmental Delivery Plans begin earlier. From 19 December 2025, Natural England can start preparing EDPs, backed by duties on public authorities to co‑operate and by a regulation‑making power for a nature restoration levy and charging schedules. Monitoring and reporting obligations follow, with annual reporting required from 1 April 2026. Promoters should expect EDPs to become a fixed reference point in habitats, net‑gain and mitigation discussions.

Timelines matter here. If a CPO’s notice of making or the notice that a draft order has been prepared was first published before 18 February 2026, the new conditional‑confirmation amendments to the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 will not apply. Similarly, expedited vesting under section 108 will not apply to compulsory acquisitions authorised before it comes into force. Teams should document publication and authorisation dates now to avoid disputes later.

On programme and cashflow, earlier vesting can compress the gap between a decision to proceed and legal ownership, which in turn can reduce site security costs and contingency around prolonged possession risk. Conditional confirmation allows confirming authorities to attach safeguards while still giving schemes the certainty they need to advance utilities, design and enabling works funding.

For investors, the five‑year NPS cycle anchors long‑lead assets to a predictable policy timetable. That may feed through to lower policy‑drift risk premia in models for NSIPs, particularly where procurement spans multiple fiscal events. Conversely, the emerging nature restoration levy introduces a new cost line to forecast; sponsors should seek early clarity on how charging schedules will interact with biodiversity net gain and existing section 106 obligations.

What to do before 18 February 2026: review live CPO pipelines for eligibility under the new rules, agree an approach to unknown interests and unoccupied plots, refresh compensation assumptions for parish‑led acquisitions, and map where EDP requirements could alter surveys or mitigation. The statutory instrument is technical, but the operational impact is real once dates are pinned.